Kill the bill: Trade Union Bill will stretch resources as well as limit action

The NSSN's 'Kill the Bill' lobby of the TUC in 2015, photo by Paul Mattsson (Click to enlarge)

Dan Celardi, Lambeth and South West London Socialist Party

The government finally released its impact assessment for the trade union bill on 21 January. It estimates the bill will cost unions Ł37 million over the next six years.

Initial scrutiny already suggests the predictions are far too modest.

For example, they expect trade unions to be able to process a direct debit or change of details form in just 30 seconds!

'Hard working people'

The Tories claim the bill is about protecting hard working people. This principle doesn't seem high on the agenda when they are slashing the vital jobs services that people rely on.

The real agenda is to silence resistance to their savage policies.

The TUC planned week of action for 8-14 February is nowhere near the action needed to defeat this bill.

A 'mass meeting' via the internet with Frances O'Grady will not stop the Tories.

The TUC and affiliate unions should be calling meetings in every branch and every workplace to discuss action.

Ultimately, the only thing that will stop the Tories is action on the scale of what defeated previous anti-union laws.

Workers need to organise and build together for a 24-hour general strike. A campaign of this magnitude would build a movement to kill the bill and kick out the Tories.

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